Coahoma Community College made history at the 2021 NJCAA National Track and Field Championships by having representatives for the first time in the female sprint event and the male triple jump competition.

Georgette Daley represented Tiger Nation in the women's 100 meters, securing her spot to Nationals by being in the top 35 female sprinters in the nation. Antonio Weekes qualified for the men's triple jump amongst the best 20 jumpers in the country. Coahoma's head track and field coach Reggy Hankerson expressed how immense their qualification was for Coahoma in gaining more exposure for the institution.

"It was monumental for Georgette to go on the female side. It was the first time we had a female qualifier in the sprint events. For Antonio, it was major as he was nationally ranked coming into the competition, and he was the first-ever field event participant for Coahoma to qualify for Nationals," said Hankerson.

The meet took place in Levelland, Texas, on the campus of South Plains Community College. Daley would be the first to represent Coahoma. The Jamaican native placed fifth in her heat and missed qualifying for the finals and a chance to become All-American.

Daley was not pleased with her performance, but Coach Hankerson still believes her participation was very beneficial.

"She did not do as well as she wanted to do, but it was still good for her to get the experience and knowledge of racing against the best female sprinters in the national junior college level," said Hankerson.

South Plains Rosemary Chukwuma won the women's 100 meters final in 11.35 seconds, with Ayla Stanisclaus from New Mexico Junior College placing second in 11.46 seconds and third place going to Iowa Central's Odell Frye clocking a time of 11.50 seconds.

Next up would be Weekes, who had top-three finishes in both the long jump and triple jump events all through the 2021 season. Despite Weekes' stellar previous performances, he has been battling a hamstring injury. Unfortunately, after only one jump during Friday's competition, Weekes was forced to exit the competition after feeling a sharp pain in his right hamstring.

Weekes' emotions were on high display of disappointment and grief after working so hard to get to Nationals and knowing he had the capabilities to place in the top three and make history for Coahoma. Hankerson expressed that the situation was misfortunate, but injuries are prone to reoccur amid intense competition such as Nationals.

"It was hard for us to witness what happened because we were expecting a great accomplishment from him, but we are already focusing on his recovery," said Hankerson. Moving forward, Hankerson believes Daley will use her visit to Nationals as motivation to ensure she gets to the women's 100m finals next year.

"Now she knows what it takes to get on this high-level stage, and that will motivate her to work even harder." He also continued by stating Weekes' injury is just a minor hurdle in his successful future that awaits him at Coahoma."Once he is healthy, there is no doubt that he won't become All-American. He will have an opportunity to represent Coahoma, "said Hankerson.

This year's participation was Coahoma's third trip to the NJCAA National Track and Field Championships, and Hankerson believes the Coronavirus resulted in fewer athletes qualifying.

"The pandemic affected us because we were not allowed to participate at the bigger D1 meets like Mississippi State. Also, we experienced terrible weather conditions that forced meets to be canceled," said Hankerson. Daley and Weekes are hopeful that their qualification and trip to Texas will motivate their Coahoma teammates. The track and field team is already highly motivated as they are the only sporting group at Coahoma that commutes off campus to practice as there is no track.

Weekes and Daley would be returning to Coahoma for the Fall to continue their studies and athletics. In addition, Weekes will be visiting his native Caribbean country of Barbados in June of this year for a chance to qualify for the 2021 Tokyo Summer Olympics.

If he qualifies, he will make history for Coahoma as the first-ever Tiger to compete at the Olympics. Stay tuned to www.coahomasports.com for more news and updates.